DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: 16 NOV 2017

i. The Union Cabinet chaired by PM
Shri Narendra Modi has given the following set of approvals. The full list of
Cabinet Approvals is given as follows.

ii. The Cabinet has approved-

1. The establishment of the
National Anti-profiteering Authority under GST.

2. Resolution for adoption of the
recommendations of the Railway Convention Committee (2014) as contained in
their 6th Report on "Rate of Dividend payable by the Railways to the
General Revenues for the year 2016-17 and other ancillary matters".

3. Agreement between India and
Belarus on Scientific and Technological Cooperation for mutual benefit in the
areas of science, technology, agriculture, etc.

4. MoU between India and Poland
for the promotion of Civil Aviation Cooperation.

5. Continuation of sub-schemes
under Umbrella Scheme “Integrated Child Development Services” for the period
till November 2018.

ii. The ETF is part of the
government’s overall disinvestment programme and mirrors the S&P BSE Bharat
22 Index, which comprises select companies from the central public sector
enterprises universe, stakes held under the Specified Undertaking of the Unit
Trust of India, and state-run banks.

3.US CONSULATE GENERAL
LAUNCHES FOR YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS

i. The US Consulate General,
Kolkata launched ‘Youth for Business-Y4BIZ’, a support programme for young
entrepreneurs in the eastern region of India.

ii. Under ‘Youth for Business-Y4BIZ’
programme, a group of 50 young entrepreneurs will be supported to transform
their business ideas from the initial stage to a sustainable business model.

iii. This programme will be
launched soon in three other cities of eastern India – Guwahati (Assam), Patna
(Bihar), Ranchi (Jharkhand). The 50 entrepreneurs will be selected through a
screening process after the programme is launched in all four cities.

iv. This programme is an
initiative undertaken by US Consulate General in collaboration with social
enterprise Contact Base and is part of a series of activities in the run up to
the upcoming 8th Global Entrepreneurship Summit which will be held in Hyderabad
from 28th – 30th November, 2017.

4.RBI REJECTS HDFC BANK'S
REQUEST TO DECLASSIFY HDFC AS FII

i. The Reserve Bank of India has
reportedly rejected HDFC Bank's plea to declassify its parent Housing
Development Finance Corporation Limited as a foreign institutional investor.

ii. The RBI has rejected the
request citing current rules which require HDFC to be classified as FII. The
move will have an impact on HDFC Bank's fundraising program from qualified
institutional placement.

5.SYRIA SIGNS UP PARIS
AGREEMENT ON CLIMATE CHANGE

i. According to the UN report,
Syria has officially signed up to the Paris Agreement, leaving the United
States as the only country to reject the global climate-rescue pact.

ii. Syria became the 169th of 196
countries that are members of the UN climate convention to take the legal step
of ratification. After Nicaragua signed up in October 2017, Syria and USA were
the only countries not to have adopted the pact.

i. The International Solar
Alliance has announced a target to support setting up 1000GW of solar energy
capacity by 2030 across its member countries. It will be met through projects
that ISA will support under its various work programmes.

ii. This target does not take
into account renewable energy targets or projects that countries are pursuing
on their own as part of their national efforts.

iii. This initiative by India to
harness the untapped resource of sunshine-rich countries between the Tropics of
Cancer and Capricorn was backed by France, and was launched at the Paris
climate talks in 2015. 16 countries have ratified the framework agreement of
the International Solar Alliance and it will come into force on 6 December
2017.

7.AMBANIS TOP FORBES LIST OF
ASIA'S RICHEST FAMILIES

i. India’s Ambani family has
topped the Forbes list of Asia’s Richest Families for the first time with a net
worth of $44.8 billion, up $19 billion from the previous year. The collective
wealth of Asia’s 50 richest families on the list is a record $699 billion,
according to the Forbes.

i. Canada hosted the 2017 UN
Peacekeeping Defence Ministerial Conference in Vancouver, Canada. This
conference is the largest gathering of Defence ministers dedicated to UN
Peacekeeping.

ii. The goals of this conference
are- to measure the progress made since the 2016 UN Peacekeeping Defence
Ministerial;

iii. To encourage new pledges
from the Member States, particularly in areas where the UN faces gaps, such as
rapid deployment, helicopters, and francophone units.

9.US APPROVES FIRST PILL
WITH DIGITAL TRACKING DEVICE

i. The Food and Drug
Administration has approved the first drug in the United States with a digital
ingestion tracking system, in an unprecedented move to ensure that patients
with mental illness take the medicine prescribed for them.

ii. The drug Abilify MyCite,
developed by Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd, was first approved by the FDA in
2002 to treat schizophrenia.

ii. The portal can be accessed at
http://saubhagya.gov.in. ‘Saubhagya’ scheme was launched by PM of India, Shri
Narendra Modi on 25th September 2017 with an outlay of Rs. 16,320 Crores
including Budgetary Support of Rs. 12,320 Crores.

11.ABU DHABI AWARD FOR APMDC

i. The Andhra Pradesh Mineral
Development Corporation has bagged an international award from Abu Dhabi.

ii. The ADI PEC (Abu Dhabi
International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference) Excellence in Energy Awards
2017 had adjudged the APMDC as the winner for the second position in the
category of “social contribution in country value.”

12.BSE APPOINTS S RAVI AS ITS NEW CHAIRMAN

i. Eminent chartered accountant
Sethurathnam Ravi has been appointed as the chairman of the leading Bombay
Stock Exchange.

ii. Ravi, who was a public
interest director at the BSE, replaced Dhirendra Swarup.

13.NATIONAL PRESS DAY: 16 NOVEMBER

i. National Press Day is
celebrated on November 16 to commemorate the establishment of the Press Council
of India.

ii. Formed in 1966, the Press
Council keeps a check on the quality of reportage provided by the Indian press.

14.VETERAN VOCALIST JAGDISH MOHAN PASSES AWAY

i. Renowned Hindustani vocalist
of Kirana Gharana, Jagdish Mohan has passed away. He aged 87. He was from
Haridwar.

ii. Mohan was honored with the
Sangeet Sartaj award by Pracheen Kala Kendra, Chandigarh for his vast
contribution to Indian classical music.